


The Unexplainable

by theauthor2010



Category: Glee
Genre: Gen, Kidnapping, Non Consensual, Sex Trafficking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-03-04
Updated: 2011-03-05
Packaged: 2017-10-16 02:40:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 8
Words: 9,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/167546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theauthor2010/pseuds/theauthor2010
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kurt suddenly returns to Lima, after being missing for almost a year. Nobody knows how to deal.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Will Schuester

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted November 27th. This is chapter one of eight. I am editing as I repost this because the chapters just don't read right to me.

The sound jolted Will away from the stack of Spanish midterms sitting on his desk in a neat yet barely touched pile. It was a small sound, just a soft dragging sound at first. The cry that followed the dragging sound sounded like that of a wounded animal. A sudden weak moan followed after that. Something was very wrong and Will wasn't sure that it was the animal he initially expected it to be. "What kind of animal gets itself dragged into this place?" he groaned aloud, heading down the hall to investigate the source of the mystery noise. There was also always the possibility that he was going crazy and had completely made up the sound.

It had been a hell of a year and he wasn't feeling exactly stable, not anymore at least, and he was pretty sure he would never be sane again.

He followed the noise to the choir room. A loud thump registered in his ears before he focused in on the image in front of him. A small, frail body hit the floor. It lay curled up into itself, shivering.

He turned on the light and it was obvious in a split-second that took hours just who it was. "Kurt," he said, not at all ashamed of the undignified sob that passed his lips after the boy's name. Kurt Hummel had vanished almost a year earlier and Lima, Ohio was just starting to recover, finally mourning the missing child as dead.

He dropped to his knees next to Kurt, gently turning his frail form over. Kurt moved like a rag doll, turning over then going limp once again.

"Kurt, hey, can you hear me Kurt?"

His heart lurched in his chest. Kurt was so thin, barely registering as a weight in his arms when he lifted him up. Beneath the oversized t-shirt, he could see the deep bruises and more lasting marks on Kurt's arms. His face showed many varied scars that Will knew would be matched if he wasn't covered up.

His eyes fluttered open.

"I found it...I found it..." he whispered, as though his words were some kind of mantra that he needed to keep saying in order to keep himself alive.

"Kurt, where have you been?" he whispered, trying not to cry. Crying would just ruin this. Crying would break this moment.

"Everywhere, searching. Mr. Schue. Found you. Went to house...not my home, not my home anymore. Dad's gone...I found it...found it..."

He brushed back Kurt's hair from his eyes. Kurt's big eyes were full of terror and fear, but he wasn't sure that terror and fear was directed at him. "Burt's never stopped searching Kurt. He's still searching now. Oh Kurt. We gotta get you to a hospital."

Kurt shook his head and shot upright.

"No, no!" he yelled. "No hospitals for us. Nobody can know. Nobody."

He put his hands on the boy's shoulders, hoping to calm his hysteria. "Kurt, relax," he said, rubbing the boy's shoulders and trying to get a response from him that was anything but terrified.

Kurt looked into his eyes and he swore something changed there.

"I'll make it worth your while, no hospitals."

Will got up, helping Kurt to his feet. God, his voice didn't even sound like Kurt's anymore. It was hardened, that of someone who had seen far too much. "Come on. You've been so missed Kurt. So missed..."

The boy however dropped to his knees awkwardly, stumbling.

"Don't play dumb, please. No hospitals and I'll blow you. No charge. Kay? Our secret."

He was delirious, like he had no clue why his words would bring shock and horror to his former teacher's worn out face. He was talking like a boy who had been on the streets - who had been prostituting. Oh fuck.

Will swallowed. "No Kurt, no."

Where the ever-loving fuck was Kurt this past year? He breathed in and out, trying to curb the hysteria. It was coming through in waves just about then. "Kurt, you need rest okay? I'll take you to my apartment and you can sleep. No hospitals. I promise you."

He knew it was a promise that he would have to break.

Will was lucky that he didn't crash his car on the way to his apartment. He remembered absolutely nothing about the ride. All he could do was open the door and bring Kurt inside. He actually picked him up and carried him with absolutely zero effort. He laid Kurt down on his bed, covering his prone, shivering body with the warmest blanket he could find. It didn't matter how thick the blanket was, Kurt was still shivering. "Kurt, are you hungry or thirsty?"

Kurt looked at him with big, confused eyes. He nodded.

"I'll get you something."

He went to the kitchen. He looked like he hadn't eaten in weeks. He was so thin, so skeletal and fragile. It was sickening. He went and made a glass of juice, and a peanut butter sandwich. Will didn't have much food. He was sick lately. Too sick to function and too sick to eat. He had let himself go and it had been going on for a long time now.

When he brought the food, Kurt was asleep.

He laid it down and went to his phone.

Burt Hummel did not pick up.

"Burt, this is Will Schuester. I...I found Kurt. I can't even explain. I found him curled up in the choir room. I'm gonna take him to the hospital."

He hung up and looked at Kurt. The child was sleeping, eyes screwed up tight. He made small sounds as he slept, grunting and turning. Those small sounds were the small thing that kept Kurt in the realm of the living. Otherwise he may as well have been dead. He gently touched his cheek and decided that he needed to take him to the hospital, whether he liked it or not.

"I'm sorry Kurt."


	2. Burt Hummel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally published November 28th, Edited.

“Where the fuck is my son?"

Burt's near roar broke through the static, rumble and chaos of the hospital. He didn't look like the same man he once was anymore. He wasn't. His son, his reason for living, had been missing for eleven months and six days and was now presumed dead. The only reason he had kept his heart beating was to get closure, to hold Kurt in his arms again, whether he had to hold him there dead or alive. He had lost everything - his steady relationship with his wife, his business, his life - leaving Kurt the only thing that mattered. He was a shell, no longer a substantial man. He was a skeleton.

"Schuester," he yelled, seeing Will Schuester and several uniformed police officers standing near the reception desk.  "Where is he?"

The teacher, who looked almost as haggard as he did, turned and met his eyes. "Burt, he's been brought to a room."

He couldn’t believe it. All of these months of needy, desperate searching and Kurt’s teacher, Will Schuester, had left a frantic voicemail that he had found him.

"I need to see him," he said, daring anyone to stop him. "I need to see my son now."

One police officer nodded, though the other looked like he wanted to question him. Every cop in Lima and beyond knew Burt Hummel now and they knew this situation. They would be fools to deny him the right to see Kurt. "Go ahead sir," he said. "The hospital staff expects you."

They let him right inside, possibly fearing for their lives.

Oh god. He hadn't seen Kurt in almost a year but his son's face was etched deeply into his memory. It didn't look like this. Kurt lay before him, ghostly thin and pale, all sharp angles and ragged breathing. He had scars on his face and was sleeping with his face scrunched up tightly in a horrible, pained expression.

He touched his son's cheek and sobbed. He had dried up months ago but here he was, sobbing hysterically. "Kurt, Kurt my baby boy...Kurt..."

Kurt's eyelashes fluttered. His eyes opened.

"Daddy."

  
Kurt thrashed and started bawling his eyes out. He cried, gasping for air and choking on the dry sobs that came from his heaving chest. "Dad...dad...daddy! Please...I looked, miles, so many miles. Cars and trucks and going..."

Burt held him tight, arms around his waist.

"Kurt, I g-got ya. Don't move. You'll mess with all these wires and stuff."

He clung to his son like he'd never let go. Kurt clung back just as ferociously. Burt was still afraid of breaking him. He was so fragile. He was like glass. "Oh my god Kurt," he whispered. "I searched the whole goddamned state. High and low. They told me you were dead. Even...nevermind. I would never give up on you son, ever."

Kurt whined.

"Wasn't in Ohio. I dunno. I escaped. I escaped. I already let so many guys...I was gonna kill myself. I wanted to. I tried."

"Shh," Burt mumbled, kissing his son's hair. "It’s okay. You need to sleep. Close your eyes okay?"

Kurt shook his head. "Can't sleep. Sleep is bad...get beaten...oh my god he took me to the hospital." Kurt wailed, soft. "Mr. Schue...he promised. Promises..." He looked hysterical, the betrayal flashing through his eyes fast. Obviously Schuester had promised not to take him to the hospital.

"He did what's best by you Kurt. Go to sleep now okay?"

Kurt nodded, a frail hand clinging to Burt's shirt so tightly, he would never let go unless forced. Burt would never let go either. He finally had Kurt in his arms once again. Finally the struggle, the pain, it came up with something.

He now held Kurt in is arms, nothing was more important than that.

Burt didn't let Kurt go or at least didn't leave his side. He let the doctors do their job but he was there, watching like a hawk as they poked and prodded at his baby boy. Almost a year of torture, agony he couldn't describe, he wasn't letting go of his son. Nobody could pry him away.

When Officer Jacobs entered the room though, with a doctor at his side, Burt did look up.

Officer Dan Jacobs had been on Kurt’s case since the moment he had realized his son was missing. He had been the only one to listen to what other’s called Burt’s crackpot-desperate-theories and plans. He had been the only one as determined as Burt to find his baby boy alive and well. Burt admired him, Burt needed him. He was pretty much the only lifeline he had in this town and now he was here again. He forced an appreciative look.

"What's wrong with him?"

The doctor frowned. "He's severely malnourished. We've treated several lacerations, deep bruises and we believe he has several badly healed broken bones in his left wrist, rib and in the junction of his shoulder." She looked uncomfortable. "It appears that he's also been the victim of sexual assault. Many times. The damage is consistent with it."

The officer touched Burt on the shoulder. "His comments to the teacher indicated some very disturbing things Burt, but we will get to the bottom of this. I need testimony from Kurt the minute he wakes up again. I am so happy you found your son again, you have no idea Burt. I always believed in you two, always.”

Burt nodded, shakily. “Dan can you please get my wife?” he asked, surprised to find himself calling her that after all they’d been through.

“Of course Burt. Please. Use my private line when Kurt wakes up.”


	3. Carole Hudson-Hummel

Carole could not believe the words. She nearly dropped the phone in her hand, but held onto it, clutching it like it was a lifeline.

“Hey Carole, it’s Dan Jacobs. You’re never gonna believe this but Kurt was found. Burt told me to get ahold of you as soon as possible.”

He hung up shortly after and Carole was just left speechless. She had lost so much in the past year because of losing Kurt. She broke down crying, the moment the phone left her ear. She exhaled and sobbed. She let the phone drop. Carole could not believe the news. They found Kurt. It was something she had been dreaming about, her stepson being found alive. It was something she and Finn had sat together and prayed desperately for.

It was something that she had given up on.

The desperate search for Kurt was what had torn her and Burt apart. She had been strong for Burt, for Finn and for herself but even the strength of a mother had limits. She had her limits and they had run completely to their end.

After the first nine months of searching, she had been exhausted. She had cried too many tears, held Finn while he mourned his brother and it was starting to feel hopeless. For all she knew, it was hopeless.

“Burt...Finn's failing most of his classes, you and I...bills are piling up. I think...it's time we hold the funeral. Give the town closure."

She had sworn in that moment her mild mannered, sweet, beloved Burt was going to hit her. He raised his hand to do so, but instead he hit the wall and yelled at her. "I will never give up on Kurt. Never.”

Burt hadn't been home since, on his mission. Now he was telling her Kurt was alive.

She wrote Finn a shaky note.

\- Call me when you get home. Love you. Mom.

She quickly rushed to the hospital. It took her no time at all.

Her scream upon seeing Burt holding a frail Kurt in his arms just ripped from her lungs. Kurt looked like death. His body was skeletal in his father's arms. Burt looked up and whispered her name. "Carole," he whispered. "Carole, they said he was probably caught in a…a sex-trafficking ring. I…I…” He broke down crying, but not the sobs they had suffered through together for months; there were only little whimpers left his throat.

She reached over and held Burt by the arm and then brought him closer. All of the anger just slipped away.

"Shh sweetheart," she mumbled, kissing the top of his head. "Look at him Burt, he's alive and in your arms again like you said. He's going to make it just like you said. You were right baby, always right."

She was so scared, she couldn’t stop shaking, even as she tried to be strong and keep Burt together. She could feel the man’s ribs through his clothes when she held him. When did he get so damned skinny? She realized that she hadn’t held Burt for three months and closing her eyes, she tried very hard not to cry. “Burt, how long have you been here?”

“Six hours,” he mumbled softly.

“You need to go get something to eat or drink downstairs.”

“I am not leaving him Carole,” Burt said, like she expected, and gave her an outright death glare. She looked back, just as strong.

“Burt, come on. Kurt’s here now and he needs a strong daddy. I haven’t seen you in three months and you look like you’re ready to keel over yourself. He needs both of us, to be as strong as we can possibly be.”

She waved Will Schuester over from the hallway. He had been there for her, quite a bit during these past months and had supported Finn. She knew that without the man her son would have failed his junior year. Will had pulled a lot of strings for him.

“Will, honey, can you please take Burt downstairs to get some food and water in him? He’s not gonna do Kurt any good passed out.”

“You’ll watch him?” Burt asked weakly.

She put her hand on his cheek, holding his face in place. “Burt Hummel, I love Kurt. He is my son. I’ll keep him safe for fifteen minutes. I swear that to you.”

She had missed just touching the man.

She sat down by Kurt’s bedside, touching his pale hand. He was so delicate, so fragile, she was sure she’d break him if she did more than gently brush against him. “Kurt,” she said softly. “You have no idea how much I love you, or how much I missed you. I didn’t want to give up. Ever. I never wanted to give up on you. I have always believed in you Kurt.”

He opened his eyes at her voice. He looked at her with childlike, innocent eyes. “Carole,” he said softly.

She gasped, then tried to contain herself and smiled.

“Hi Kurt. My god baby, I missed you”

He looked at her, sad and confused, like he recognized her but she came from another universe. “Finn?” he asked.

She gently touched his cheek. “Finn’s at school right now, honey. I told him to call me as soon as he gets home. God, he missed you Kurt.”

“Finn can’t see me…Finn can’t know me anymore…no. I’m not the same. I’m not me. He won’t like…”

“Hey, Finn adores you,” she said softly. “Rest Kurt. Close your eyes.”

Kurt closed his eyes, wincing, doing what she told him. Carole took in all the tiny signs of injury, the pained look on his face, the bruises. “What day is it?” he asked.

“November 30th,” she said gently.

“I missed your anniversary with dad,” he said softly. “I remembered dates…lots of dates…to keep me here…Finn’s birthday…Finn and Rachel’s six month anniversary…their other anniversary ... the day you married Dad…my mom’s birthday…”

He was rambling, hysterical and it hurt. It hurt to see her son look like that. He leaned back against his pillow, rambling about dates. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that she’d missed her anniversary too. She had spent it alone, crying into a pillow, while Finn stood outside her door trying to comfort her. “We’ll all celebrate together when you’re better, okay?” she said softly. “We’re so glad we got our Kurt back. We did everything in the world to find you. Your daddy never…ever gave up.”

“I know he wouldn’t…”

That broke her heart.

“We got our Kurt back,” she said. “That’s all that matters.”

“No you didn’t.”


	4. Finn Hudson

Finn read the note and immediately called his mother. His mom never wrote notes which sent a shudder of urgency through him. Something had to be wrong, or perhaps something had to be very, very right. He could not believe a word that came from her mouth when she answered the phone.

"Finn, baby," she said softly. "You're never going to believe me but Kurt was found. I'm at the hospital right now. You should...please come."

There was a slight hesitance in her voice which he heard but did not acknowledge because Kurt was there, Kurt was alive. Tears filled his eyes before he even spoke. He could not stop himself from crying, remembering back to all the days they had mourned his stepbrother as dead.

"How can he be alive?" he whispered in a voice that sounded cracked, foreign even to him.

His mom had spent hours holding him while he sobbed and cried for his lost brother. She had even paid for sessions with that stupid therapist who talked grief stages and coping strategies. How could he be alive and well after all that pain? All of the things that his family had suffered through alone and Kurt was alive.

"Baby, I wish I knew...it's a miracle yes, but Kurt's here. Can someone drive you? You can't drive like this."

Somehow she knew exactly what stats he was in. His vision blurred, the room hazy and just standing up made him nauseous. "I'll call Blaine..."

"Ok," she said. "I love you."

"Love you mom."

He pressed the speed dial on his phone for Blaine and then collapsed on the floor. He sat in a heap by the kitchen counter, phone to his ear, listening to the steady ring. It calmed him down; the sound got him focusing.

"Hey Finn," came the comforting voice of Blaine Anderson. Blaine and Kurt had become boyfriends officially a whole two days before Kurt disappeared. Blaine had taken the disappearance hard but had also become a rock for Finn, and for Mercedes, who wasn't doing well at all. He was a good friend, one of the best.

"They found him," Finn sobbed.

There was no room for question, as far as what he meant. "When, where..." Blaine tried, the question hanging in the air.

"I dunno," he said, his voice and chest hollow. "Mom said she's at the hospital. I need a ride..."

"We're coming."

The phone clicked and Finn was left with his tortured thoughts. He stuck his phone in his pocket and went outside to wait for Blaine and by extension Mercedes.

It was cold for November, but Finn hadn’t bothered to put on a coat. He couldn’t think of anything other than getting to Kurt, seeing Kurt again. It was a scene that had played out in his mind thousands of times in thousands of different ways – the joyful reunion, finding Kurt alive and well, holding onto his stepbrother and never ever letting go again.

Time blurred into Blaine’s arrival.

Blaine’s silver, sleek BMW pulled up to the curb. As Finn had predicted, Mercedes was in the passenger seat. She was crying, somewhat hysterically.

A lot had changed about Mercedes in the past months. She had lost a ton of weight, and always looked sick. She had been admitted to a psych hospital shortly after Kurt’s disappearance and Finn knew Blaine was taking care of her – a lot. His justification was that she meant a ton to Kurt, and now he had to be there for her as well.

“What’s going on?” she yelled at him, the second he slipped into the back seat of the car.

Finn shook his head, breathing deep. “I don’t know,” he said, and only in the warmth of Blaine’s car did he start absolutely shivering. “My mom just called and said she couldn’t explain it but Kurt was there…Kurt is there…”

Mercedes sobbed, loudly. Blaine’s face just went hard and he kept on driving. He was like the master of cool. He always kept cool even when things were crumbling into little confusing pieces like right now.

Blaine pulled into the hospital parking lot and handed Finn a jacket. “Put this on,” he said. Finn slipped the jacket on awkwardly and followed. Mercedes practically barreled ahead of the two and Blaine chased after her.

Entering the hospital, he looked for any sign of someone he cared about. His mom was luckily standing nearby. “Mom,” he said quickly and she pulled him into her arms. It felt so good to be held tightly by his mom when he was so freaked out. This couldn’t be for real. It couldn’t. He held on tightly, breathing deeply. “Mom, where is he? Is he really okay?”

She nodded. “He’s with Burt, I’m sure they’ll let you see him, you’re his brother…but we gotta talk first.”

Finn looked over to Blaine and Mercedes. Blaine had taken the girl to a seat in the waiting room, smart and calm, even though inside Finn could tell he was ready to burst from the inside. “What happened to him mom?” he asked earnestly. “Where has he been all year?”

“We don’t know for sure,” she said softly. “It’s not good though Finn. You gotta know that he’s very much traumatized. He’s been assaulted…you know sexually, and Officer Jacobs, the man who’s been working with Burt all these months – well…he has some bad ideas.” She looked very traumatized and not at all like his mom. There were dried tears on her face and she was very calm and emotionless. “If they allow you to see him Finn, please be gentle. He was very scared of how you would see him.”

Finn’s mother went to talk to a woman sitting at a desk and he was left to speak to Blaine and Mercedes for a minute.

“What the fuck is happening Finn?” Mercedes asked harshly. She was like that a lot now, course, rude, angry. Losing Kurt had screwed her up more than most people. “Please tell me,” she sobbed low and Blaine wrapped his arm around her.

“Mom’s really messed up. She said that he was…assaulted and they don’t know but it’s really bad. I’m gonna find out anything I can for you guys.”

His mother returned. “You can see Kurt for a few minutes honey. He’ll be happy to see you. He needs to see you.” She was rambling. That was so scary to Finn, but he ignored his fear and quickly went to the room.

Kurt was lying flat in the hospital bed. Burt was sitting at his side, holding his hand. It was some kind of miracle. “Kurt,” he whispered, crossing his arms over himself. He had tried so hard to stay strong, but every time he thought of Kurt he broke down. Now that he was looking at him once again, something his mother had told him to give up on, he choked to hide the sobs. He had the most powerful urge to stay strong, cool and collected for his brother.

Kurt’s eyes, which had been half closed, snapped open. “Finn,” he said softly and there was nothing – absolutely nothing – like the smile that crossed his face, haunted and overjoyed at the same time. “Finn, you’re here.”

Finn carefully stepped over to his brother. He looked so fragile, Finn was afraid of breaking him. Burt even looked protective when he got too close. Finn barely recognized his stepdad anymore. He had listened to his mom crying in her room, many, many nights, lamenting the loss of her husband. Maybe Kurt would bring Burt back. The thought gave him some hope. “Hey Kurt,” he whispered softly. “I can’t believe you’re here…”

Kurt let go of his father’s hand for a minute, looked around hesitantly and then reached his arms out for Finn.

Burt looked surprised. Finn just hugged his brother tightly. “I missed you so much dude, so much…” Kurt started crying, low sobs. Finn wasn’t good with crying, never had been. “Shh dude its okay, I got you,” he said soft.

“How did you…get here?” Kurt asked.

“Blaine drove me,” Finn said, still holding him very tightly. He still smelled like Kurt. He knew that was a weird thing to think but he had missed the essence of his little brother, so much. “Blaine and Mercedes are here. They were crazy missing you all this time…”

“Blaine, my boyfriend…” Kurt said sadly. He closed his eyes and let out a tiny cry. Finn could not imagine the horror going off behind his eyes. “Blaine, he was supposed to be the one to…we were gonna…someday…oh…Finn…”

Finn let go of him for just a moment. “You’re going to be okay Kurt. I promise. I promise.”

He had to get some answers. What had happened to Kurt?


	5. Blaine Anderson

“I wanna see him,” she said softly. “He can’t really be here, can he?”

Mercedes looked at Blaine with imploring, desperate eyes and not for the first time in his life, he wished that he had all of the answers. When Kurt had disappeared, his heart had broken. He had waited for any word that Kurt was okay. He had sat on edge, waiting for the phone call that would come, the news that Kurt was okay, but it had never come. People stopped waiting.

Mercedes had tried to kill herself two months after Kurt vanished, and they became like this, joined at the hip. He didn’t mind. He loved her and immediately took the spot that once belonged to Kurt. She needed him.

He still remembered sitting in that mental hospital with her, making her promise she’d never do that again, never make an attempt on her own life, because it killed him inside to see her like that.

“Kurt would never want to see you like this, Cedes,” he said, using Kurt’s nickname for the girl. “You and I gotta stick together, for his sake okay? We’re gonna make it, we’re gonna make it together.”

They had been inseparable ever since but Blaine had to admit he was tired – tired of being the hero, the savior. He tried to be there, inspire her back to the girl she once was, the girl Kurt called his best friend, but he was exhausted. He wanted to be the boy who missed his boyfriend again. He wanted to be eighteen, confused and tired. He hugged her close and shook his head. “I don’t know honey, I don’t know…He must be back, but I don’t get how, at all. Let’s just wait, breathe and we can…find out what’s next.”

Answers came quick, or so he hoped, when Finn walked up to them. “Finn, what happened?” Mercedes asked before Blaine could open his mouth. “Is he really here?”

Finn nodded. “Yes,” he said softly. “He is here.” He didn’t seem nearly as overjoyed as Blaine thought he should have.

“Finn, what’s wrong?”

Finn sat down in a chair, head in his hands. “He broke down when I said your name,” he said honestly. “He started ranting about horrible things…being…violated…” Finn was obviously using politer terms, trying to think on his feet and use words that wouldn't make them sick. “And how you were supposed to be his first time. He was talking about being sold…the officer Burt’s with, Dan, thinks there’s like this sex-slavery group involved and it’s so fucked up.”

He looked between them. “I…I watched him smack a doctor away from him, screaming not to touch him there,” he said. “There’s just so much wrong with this. My mom made me leave. I just…I don’t know how we’re going to get him through this.”

Mercedes moved over so that Blaine could hug Finn. Blaine leaned down, hugging the boy tight to him. “Finn, its okay…” he said softly, the horror in his eyes evident, he was sure. “Finn, your family is so strong. Your mom and Kurt’s dad…everyone’s going to be there for him. We’re all going to be here for him.”

Finn exhaled but it turned into a sob. “Blaine, you should have seen him! He weighed like nothing and there were all these scars on him. His…his hospital gown hid them some but you could see burns and cuts on his arm…his face had a scar down the front. He looked like he was going to die. Then he started howling and shrieking and I just…don’t know what to do. He said don’t touch me…and hit his arms around…”

“I’m going to the bathroom.”

Blaine watched Mercedes as she left. He shook his head a little bit. “Finn, please calm down…” he said soft.

He wrapped his arms around Finn’s shoulders and sighed. “I’ve been working really hard with Mercedes, you know?” he said. “I’m afraid that this will be the ultimate relapse to her. I just don’t want to see her do anything she regrets. Damn it, I just want to get her back…I promised Kurt, I promised him mentally. I promised I’d get her back to who she was.”

Finn leaned close. “Sorry Blaine,” he mumbled. “You really hold shit together.”

Blaine sighed. “I try my best.” Truth was, he wasn’t holding stuff together as well as everyone thought. He was notoriously good at faking it.

“I just want to find who did this to Kurt and string them up and kill them. I want to rip them limb from limb and tell them to give me my brother back. Blaine that wasn’t Kurt in there you know…it was this broken…”

“Shh Finn, I get you. I’m gonna go to the bathroom too.”

He got up and hurried to the bathroom. He glanced at the women’s room, hoping Mercedes was okay, but went straight into the men’s room. He pulled a plastic bag out of his coat pocket, with his meds inside. Blaine hadn’t told anyone but he was taking three medications now for depression, anxiety and just to cope. He needed his pills, right now.

He swallowed quickly, taking them with a swig of tap water.

He closed his eyes and tried not to cry, but tears welled up in his eyes anyway. He felt the same way Finn did. He wanted to find whoever did this to Kurt and kill him. He wasn’t even sure how he would handle being face to face with Kurt like Finn was. He had loved him. He had wanted them to have a future together. Kurt had meant the world for him. He loved Kurt. He had only been dating him for such a short time before Kurt was ripped away.

“You gotta be okay Kurt,” he said soft. “I need you back. I can’t hold down this fort anymore. Your friends, my friends, fuck it’s too much.”


	6. Mercedes Jones

Mercedes entered the women’s room and looked at herself in the mirror. She hated what she saw. She had lost a ton of weight, and her face was just sunken in. Her eyes were baggy; she was unkempt and looked ridiculous from all of the crying.

Blaine was right; this wasn’t her.

She had turned into something she hated from the moment Finn had come to her crying and told her that Kurt was missing.

Losing Kurt, temporarily, when he went to Dalton had broken her heart once, but really losing him had just torn her inside out. Kurt was part of who she was. Kurt was her best friend and he meant more to her than anyone else in her life. He had been with her through the best and worse, and even though they were having hard times when he disappeared, he still meant more to her than anyone else. He was her boy.

She turned on the faucet and splashed water on her face. “This is pathetic,” she said aloud. “This isn’t you. This is some freaky shell of you, and your boy can’t have that. He’s here. He’s alive. He needs the real me.”

She thought about that for a moment.

This time last year she wouldn’t have waited in a little room, clinging to Blaine like her life depended on it, when her boy needed her. She would make sure her boy was okay, regardless of the consequences. She nodded and walked out of the bathroom and went straight down the hall.

A couple of people looked at her, but she just glared. The hell with anyone who would stop her. This was Kurt and when Kurt needed her, she was there for him. He had obviously been through hell and he needed something more.

Her heart broke a little at the sight of him. Kurt lay in a hospital bed, eyes open but half focused. He held his father’s hand tightly, clinging to his whole arm like he was afraid the man was going to disappear. Finn was right; she could see the scars covering his tiny form. Had Kurt ever been that thin? No. He was a naturally skinny guy but now he looked like he would crack with any pressure at all.

“Kurt,” she said.

Burt looked up at her like she was an intrusion on the fort he had put up for his son. He opened his mouth to speak but Kurt beat him to it. “Mercedes,” he said, his eyes going sharp, focused. He sat straight up in bed, though the look on his face indicated that it was painful to do so.

“Shh, Kurt, relax, you’re going to pull at all those wires,” she said, finding her voice. “I just had to see you.”

He reached out for her. He looked at his dad. “Please Dad, I need…”

Burt looked between them for a long moment, and then gently undid Kurt’s fingers, which had curled around his arm. “I need to talk to Carole,” he said softly. He gave Mercedes a very dark look. He seemed unsure if he could trust her, or if he could honestly trust anyone. “If there are any problems, you come straight to me.”

She nodded.

She very slowly moved forward and Kurt reached for her. When she got close enough he clung to her just as he had his father. “Please, come here,” he said and hugged her ferociously tight, despite the fact that the tubes and wires all around him were keeping him still. “Oh my god Mercedes…it’s you…I made up so many ways…to see you again. I…I used so much of you to get to them…I told them not to mess with me, cause I was too goddamned awesome.”

Mercedes choked a little, surprised because she remembered just when she’d said it. “Nobody could mess with you, Kurt.”

He nodded. “I had to be like you, strong, brave but they…they ruined me,” he choked.

“Nah, you’re still my Kurt,” she said, holding onto him just as tight. “Kurt, I’m not goin’ anywhere, ok? You got out.”

Kurt shook his head. “Mercedes, it was dumb luck,” he said softly. “I saw an out and I took it.”

She nodded, rubbing his shoulder. Oh god, he was so frail.

Kurt kept talking, frantically, a mile a minute. She tried her best to understand all of it. It seemed her presence had sparked a confession of some kind in him. It was terrifying.

“I was in The Basement,” he said softly. “There was a girl, screaming. They were hurting her, Salazar and his guys…I saw him rape her. She was bloody, blood everywhere and putting up a fight. She was new…the new ones always fought…I fought when I was new…She was wearing a white skirt and it was all bloody. It reminded me of Rachel, I felt sick. They were all focusing on her so I…I had been working at the bindings for days…I used their distraction…I used her. I ran.”

Mercedes could not describe the horror that was rising in her chest at his disjointed escape story. She looked back and saw Burt and Finn’s mother, standing in the doorway. Kurt didn’t even know they were there. Chances were, he didn’t even really know she was there.

“I had to get out, I had to get out. They kept selling me. They kept making me do these horrible things. Sticking me in the street to blow the nearest guy, swearing they’d kill one of the others if I didn’t…”

He closed his eyes and tears started falling, along with choked, desperate sobs. “I ran, I ran…I used what they taught me to get home. I stole some clothes, let a guy fuck me for a ride into Ohio…so wrong…so stupid…then I found the choir room, I found it. I made it. All that searching. I thought he was gonna kill me. I was just small enough to hide, to move, to get out…”

Mercedes didn’t know what to do. She gently stroked his arm. “It’s okay Kurt…it’s all over now. We’re going to make sure that everyone who hurt you is taken care of. Your daddy, the whole town, me, we’re all here for you.”

He stopped crying after awhile and just clung to her. There was a knock.

Mercedes looked up to see that Burt was now joined with a man she recognized. Dan Jacobs, the officer in charge of Kurt’s case. He was a close friend of her family.

“Kurt,” Dan said softly. “I know this is a very hard time but I really want to get some testimony from you.”

Kurt nodded, shakily. “If Mercedes stays here…I’ll tell you all I know…”


	7. Dan Jacobs

Dan watched carefully as Kurt Hummel shifted in the girl’s arms. Mercedes Jones, he knew her parents pretty well. She wasn’t doing so well lately, and had spent some time in a psych hospital up near Westerville. She looked better though and held onto Kurt tightly, looking at Dan with a cautious expression on her face. “It’s gonna be okay honey,” she told Kurt. “I’m here with you and it’s all gonna be okay…”

Dan swallowed. Kurt looked so unbelievably broken. Dan was pretty sure he had all the answers, but they weren’t very pretty ones. If his hunch and the leads his team had followed out of Ohio were right, it was brutal, horrible. The story he had caught the ends of indicated that he was probably right, as well. He had to deal with the fact that this kid had seen the unimaginable and was possibly never going to be alright again. He lifted a photograph from the file he’d set down on the counter. “Kurt, is this the man who kidnapped you?”

Kurt inhaled, shuddered and nodded. The flash of fear that went through the boy’s eyes hurt. He was scared to death and so very haunted. “Yes.”

Dan had gone to the LAPD, yes, as far as Los Angeles, to find answers and he had come up with a man who went only by Salazar, a man who was close to being placed on the America’s Most Wanted list. He was suspected of engaging in acts of prostitution and sexual slavery. Pictures of alleged victims of Salazar had nearly made Dan throw up, honestly. He had been on the force for sixteen years and seen decapitated bodies, mutilated victims, but there was nothing like the sexual torture Kurt had possibly gone through.

“Can you tell me about the first day you were abducted Kurt?” he asked softly, sitting down near the boy’s bedside. The young girl at Kurt’s side, as well as the boy’s parents, stared at him like they were ready to pounce if he walked out of line. Still, he had to do this, despite the memories it would bring back for the poor child. He had to find out everything he could, so that he could help them bring the man who had tortured him to justice.

Kurt nodded. “I was heading home from school pretty late,” he said softly, not looking at Dan. “I remember…being worried Dad was going to be mad. I took the back roads. Then there were hands on me, and I was being shoved into a van. I breathed in something and that was it.”  
Kurt looked straight at Dan, avoiding the eyes of those he cared about. Dan didn’t blame him. It was probably the easiest way to get through this without pain. “When I woke up next I was in a basement,” Kurt said calmly, as if he had been rehearsing how he would tell this tale for ages. “The basement was dark and I couldn’t really see anything. My head hurt, my heart hurt and I felt like I was going to throw up. I started heaving when a couple of guys came in and – put handcuffs on me.”

Tears started falling down his face as he spoke. Dan wanted to comfort him, but he knew that Kurt just needed the comfort that his best friend and his parents were able to offer. Kurt shook his head a little bit. “One of them, this big dark skinned guy, Wolf, he groped at me,” he said shaking his head. “Salazar told him to take off my clothes.”

Kurt turned in towards Mercedes. “I don’t want you guys to hear all this,” he whispered. “It’s so humiliating.”

The girl hugged him tightly. “Kurt, there’s no shame in this,” she said softly. “I promise baby there is no shame in this.”

“She’s right,” Carole Hudson said softly, clinging to Kurt’s father from the other side of the room. “Kurt, none of this is your fault.”

“They threatened to kill me if I kept fighting,” Kurt said. “The real shame is that I stopped fighting and didn’t let them kill me. I wish I had died.”

He kept going after a long time spent staring at the people around him. “They stripped me and poked and prodded at me. One of them…put his finger in me…and decided that I was a virgin, even if I was the queerest thing they’d ever seen.” Kurt’s face was washed over with shame. “They kept talking about how much they would get for my virginity. It was the most terrifying thing ever. I fought them though, I swear I kept fighting. One of them even put a gun to my head and told me that I was worth a lot, but not worth the trouble.”

“They sold it to this cleancut business man, by the way,” Kurt said, his voice shrill. “I don’t know how much but he had no idea what the fuck he was doing.” He was harsh, dark. “I…can’t I just give you the abridged version of this please? I was a sex toy, I still feel like a sex toy, end of story.”

“Were there others with you in the basement?” Dan asked, still transfixed by Kurt. He was no therapist. He did just need the bare details.

“They moved us a lot,” Kurt said softly. “So the basement became many basements, vans, everything dark and terrifying. There were a lot. Boys. Girls. People died in there. People came down to his locations to get their fill. Salazar specialized in whatever people wanted, but it was highly organized, not sloppy.”

Dan touched the boy’s arm. He flinched. “Kurt, do you remember where you were when you escaped?”

Kurt frowned. “It was in California, though I don’t really know where…I just used what they trained me to do to get home.”

“Thank you Kurt,” Dan said softly, still touching Kurt, more because he was afraid to pull his hand away and scare him than anything. “I’ve been working with your dad for this last year, and I’m not giving up until the man is in jail for life, or really dead if I had my way. You’re a good kid and you’re gonna get by, I swear.”


	8. Kurt Hummel

“Dad, I’m going on a walk with Finn,” Kurt called out, looking at Finn nervously. The boy nodded, encouraging. Finn had been crucial to these months of recovery and he loved him so much for it. He was strong, encouraging and he let Blaine rest, something that Kurt pointed out that Blaine needed almost immediately.

Burt stepped into the room at his call. “Kurt, you sure that’s okay?” he asked softly. His worry was obvious.

Kurt nodded, reaching over and squeezing Finn’s hand. “Finn’s here with me, see?” he said softly. “I’m safe with him. Plus, you and Carole are having a date night, remember?” It had only taken a couple of weeks for Kurt to realize just how broken his father’s marriage was. The first night the realization had struck him, he had sat in bed crying, sobbing because he had broken them. His disappearance and all the pain he had been through was horrible enough, but at the same time he had broken the people he loved. That night Finn had held him and promised that they would all recover, together.

Burt was hesitant. “But Kurt, I can always take a moment and…”

“Burt,” Finn said, his voice surprisingly strong and confident. “I would never let any harm come to Kurt again, you know that. He’s right. You and mom need some time and to be…peaceful with each other. We’re just going to go down to the school and stuff. I have my phone, Kurt has his phone, and I’ll call as soon as we get there, okay?”

Burt nodded slowly and hugged Kurt to him. Kurt held his breath, trying not to tense up. Hugs were difficult, as was any other overpowering form of intimacy. His heart beat a little bit faster, but he didn’t cry out. “We can’t give in to fear Dad,” he said softly. “I’m tired of giving into my fears and I know I can’t be alone there.”

When his dad pulled back, there were tears in his eyes. “No, you’re not alone Kurt. None of us want to give in to fear anymore.” Kurt nodded. He had been home two, almost three months now. He was physically getting his health back, seeing a therapist daily, he was trying so hard to stop giving into fear and he wanted to see his family make the same recovery.

Carole walked into the room. “Burt, what on earth is taking you so long?” she asked, hands on her hips. She was smiling. Kurt liked her smile. It was comforting.

“He was just getting back to you,” Finn said, tucking Kurt under his arm. “Kurt and I are going for a little walk. We’ll be back in a few.”

Kurt watched as the terror gripped Carole’s eyes for a second, but then she nodded. “You boys keep close okay?” she said softly. Kurt nodded.

Kurt breathed a little bit of a sigh of relief when he and Finn finally walked out the door. “Everyone’s so scared,” he whispered, when he and Finn were safely outside.

“Can you blame them?” his brother asked, quietly. “I mean, you walked home one night and then you weren’t there anymore.” Finn was trying his best to hide them, but Kurt could see the tears there. “Anyway, I don’t want to talk about this right now, do you? I’d much rather talk about your date next week.”

Kurt turned his head up toward Finn and then stopped, dizzy as the anxiety struck again. “I’m scared,” he whispered softly. “I don’t even know that this is a good idea Finn. Doctor Carson said that it was a good idea, as long as the date was with someone I truly trusted, but I don’t think I can handle it. I mean, Blaine and I were dating…in the before…time. We kissed once, one time only…he was supposed to be my everything…”

Finn stopped them and rubbed Kurt’s arm lightly. “Breathe for me,” he said. “You don’t want to go into a panic attack right now.” Kurt inhaled. He had panic attacks, frequently, and was almost afraid to go too far from home, in case they hit. He closed his eyes and Finn lead him over towards the bench at the bus stop. He sat Kurt down. “You don’t have to do the date if you’re not ready,” Finn coaxed, quietly. “You know, Blaine said not to even call it a date. He just missed you a lot and really wanted to spend some time with just you two. He hasn’t really gone anywhere without Mercedes on his hip. He needs some time with you.”

Kurt nodded. “It’s just a friend thing. I told Blaine. I don’t want romance. Maybe never. I don’t want anyone to want me or look at me…or think of having sex with me, ever. He should find an awesome boyfriend at Dalton. It’d be good for him. He’s spent like…almost a year taking care of everyone in his life you know? He needs a strong guy.”

Kurt knew he was rambling, but Finn accepted it. He just listened, like he always did. It was the most reassuring thing ever, to know that Finn was always listening to him.

“Blaine needs romance right now like you do,” Finn said, making a surprisingly eloquent comparison. “He’s recovering and just really wants to talk to you, be close to you. He missed you more than he let on to any of us, because he was trying to keep all of us sane. I think the date is just what the two of you need.”

“Yeah if my dad doesn’t have a heart attack first,” Kurt mumbled softly. “We can get up now.”

Finn got up, taking Kurt’s hand in his. “It’s okay,” he said softly.

They walked up towards the school. “I can go back in spring,” Kurt said, as he looked at McKinley. “Our family can’t afford Dalton anymore and I’m not scared of Karofsky, not anymore. I know real fear and it’s nothing like closeted teenagers trying to hide their secret.”

Finn nodded. “Nobody would dare hurt you, you know that right?” he asked.

“Like I said,” Kurt said gently. “Fear isn’t so huge anymore.”

Finn frowned. Kurt looked at the school. “It’s late, do you think Mr. Schuester might still be in?”

Finn nodded sadly. “Yeah I think he probably would still be there. He’s really thrown himself into work since losing you. He’s…pretty messed, just like all of us are.”

Kurt bit his lower lip as he thought about the day that Mr. Schuester had found him curled up in the choir room. “I…he found me,” he said softly, redness crossing his face as the shame literally flooded it. “I was desperate. I had to get home, but I found home and it looked like a ghost town. I panicked and followed instinct and it lead me straight to the choir room. I offered to blow the man if he didn’t take me to the hospital, fuck, I…yeah.”

“It was what you had been used to for so long,” Finn comforted, but he didn’t get it. It wasn’t the sickening idea of what he had become; it was the fact that it had become his normal. Finn’s comfort was the real horror. He had been kidnapped to be trafficked around like a sex-slave but by the time he had escaped and found his freedom, he was what they made him.

Kurt took Finn’s hand and went inside. Most High Schools had more security, but this was McKinley. He walked straight into the choir room.

It looked brighter than ever, really. The piano sat empty in the middle of the room, along with a couple of the other instruments. Mr. Schuester was sitting at one of the chairs in the choir room, doing nothing but really, just staring. Finn was right; the man was really lost and messed up. “I can’t reenroll in school until after the break is over,” Kurt said quietly, taking the seat next to his. “But I was wondering if I could stowaway at glee rehearsal?”

The man snapped out of his unexplainable catatonic state. “Kurt,” he said softly.

Kurt crossed his arms around his chest, forcing with all of his might some of the old Kurt into his stance. “Well can I?” he asked.

“Of course.”


End file.
